Wow. What a difference a day makes. The Niners, coming off a 5 game winning streak, a bye week, and some fresh players activated for the game were expected to make a statement against the upstart Carolina Panthers. Well the statement is wait til next year? A team that was fighting for the NFC West crown is now the 6th seed in the playoff hunt, having been passed by these very Panthers. They now face the Saints and the ‘Skins on the road, followed by the somewhat surprising Rams and (gulp) Seahawks. Based on how this team looks now, 2-2 would be possible. Is that enough to hold on to that 6 spot? Probably, but of the teams lurking behind them (GB, Chicago, AZ, and Philly at 5-5), AZ is the strongest. Philly and Foles are coming on.
Regardless of playoff scenarios, how do the coaches fix this passing ‘attack?’ I’ve heard until I’m blue in the face how bad these WRs are. I’m beginning to doubt this. Ginn looks like fucking Jerry Rice compared to anyone not named Anquan Boldin. The team was hurt when VD went down yesterday, but these is NO downfield game. These problems were the same problems that plagues the Nolan/Hostler Niners and the Singletary/Jimmy-Hat Niners. If the Niners can run, they can work in some passes. Stop the run, and the passing game sputters. Or they go away from the run, as in yesterday after the Hunter fumble. Carolina teed off and the Niners couldn’t pass protect to save their lives.
Do we slow down the relentless pressure by going to quick counts? No huddle? Slants? Nope. We are going to run our slow-developing 5-step drop pass plays that we always run. This team continually has to use every second of the play clock to get plays off. Which means the defenses can adjust to what formations the Niners show. We did do some shifting later in the game, but the Panthers looked like they knew what was coming about 80% of the time.
Frankly, I’m sick and tired of this offense. There’s no imagination. There’s no adjustments. It’s a lot like the Singletary mentality of ‘here’s what we do. Stop it.’ When opposing defenses stop the run, this team struggles. So what does this mean going forward? I really don’t know, but I do know that Greg Roman has to go. Jim Harbaugh needs to get someone with a much more progressive offense. If we’ve proven anything so far this year, it’s that this team can beat the fair to middling teams, but struggles mightily with good ones. Winning the N’awlins game, which, after looking at last night’s game, appears to be a daunting task, puts the Niners at 6-4 and in dire playoff straits should they lose. Washington Seattle would be a loss, and the others wins. So it looks to me as if the best case scenario is 11-5, and the 6th seed. 10-6 and they are likely out.
Forty Niners Forever 
I said 10-6 to start the season. It’s looking like maybe I’ll be right. This Nawlins game is going to be bad. They’d be in tough with a full roster. But, with VD and Reid out with concussions, forget it. The absolute lack of a passing game is stunning, even give the utter crapiness of the WR corps. Throw a damn screen, or half a dozen. Do something. Manningham will probably get the rust off this Sunday. I doubt Crabby will be anything close to NFL ready when he comes back. No way this team is a playoff contender as presently constituted…
I agree with Snarkk’s assessment. 10-6 looks like about right but this offense sucks against good teams and especially with the latest injuries. PLAYOFFS??????
NO WAY!
I gotta agree Chuck. Roman is sucking eggs. I do think there is a mix of blame — no Crabs, Kaep looks deer-in-the-headlights and appears indecisive, and our coaching is Raye throwback material in the passing game. The difference between this year and last is stark.
I do think Kaep has regressed a bit. And is it just me or does he really seem slower than last year? I know they are not running him as much, but his first few steps seem like they are slow motion. I swear all the weight room work in the offseason workin on his guns I think has made him slower in the first key few steps.
But still I think more blame goes to the coaching than anywhere else. Romans’ title at Stanford was Running Game Coordinator. That just about sums it up for me. All he has shown he’s any good at IS the running game. Roman will NOT be fired this year, for those clamoring for it. The question is, will be (please) get a HC job somewhere else next year. Anywhere.
Exactly. My hope is Roman’s lured away by Houston, or anyone.
The protection has a lot to do with the inability to get out of the pocket quickly. As are the shorter routes the WRs are running. Deeper routes mean less congesdtion at the line. More running lanes. The overall sluggishness of getting the plays to Kappy and started is atill a problem. It has plagued the last 3 HCs.
“The Plague”
“Peyton Manning will definitely play against the Chiefs on Sunday.” – John Fox
Where’s Dandy Don Meredith when you really need him? “Turn out the lights, ALEX, the party’s over…”
The telling stat that the annoucer made during the game and this should wake up Roman/Harbaugh. No team that has ranked last in Passing has ever won a Super Bowl. I have been saying this for years. This is a passing League!! every rule favors the QB and the WR. Am I the only one that sees this? They better wake up!!
The 49ers are not going to the Super Bowl. Just making the playoffs is going to be a challenge. NO will be another nail in the coffin.
Fickle fans much? Roman was a “genius” last year for concentrating the offense on the college gimmick read option offense. We came out throwing in brilliant formations against GB and then threw our way into the dumpster losing two in a row. Back to the run first offense and everyone cheered since we kept winning. One loss against a top defense and everyone is on the tar and feather bandwagon.
In fact, the play calling was as balanced as it gets. The QB had a bad game,it happens, and a major cog in the game plan left in the first half. Blame the coach? I didn’t see Roman out there missing any wide open receivers. All he can do is put the players in a good situation, the players still have to play. The run was working way better than the pass in case nobody noticed.
Kaepernick is having a tough sophomore season looks like to me. Fire the coach, hell, fire all of them. There are plenty of out of work pro coaches on the blogs.
It ain’t about the balance, NoFear. It’s about the types of passing plays we use. Most all the passes are slow to develop, and thus Kappy is under pressure nearly every play. No quick slants. No passes to take the pressure off Kappy. No hot reads. This isn’t rocket surgery.
The point being, if teams stop the run, the passing game can’t bail them out. Not since game 1 anyway.
RTF, Peyton’s Broncos are going to lose. Book it.
The emphasis on 3rd down down conversions can be misleading- the problem Sunday was the 3rd down yardage needed. Of the 13 3rd downs just 4 were 5 yds or less. The others were 7 twice, 9, 10, 12,13,17,23,25.
We’ve lost 3 games- and CK has completed 50% or less in all 3. And against the best pass defense in the NFL, he completed 40%. 3 of the 4 best pass defenses in the NFL are Houston, Seattle, and Carolina. The other- New Orleans. Uh-Oh. I see that they say that they plan to get LMJ involved in the passing game this week- this is what I and others have talked about, Snarkk mentions it here- getting the running backs more involved in the passing game. Those passes thrown from behind the LOS are what can turn those 3rd and long into 3rd and 5 or less. These typically gain 5-6 yds on average. We’ve thrown 23 of those (and completed 18) . Brees- hardly a dink and dunk thrower, has thrown 61.
CK has not played well against good passing defenses- part of it is inaccuracy, part of it lack of speed receivers, and perhaps the largest part is NOT the lack of the deep throws but the lack of those screens that help move the chains and get the defense to back off on the pass rush, allowing the time for deeper throws. Finally- it’s *2nd* down that’s killing them- Colin has completed just half of his passes on second down for just a 5.85 yd per attempt. Completing just 50 percent of his short stuff is a killer. His QB rating on second down is 61.3. It’s 99.3 on third down. Sunday he was 4 of 6 on third down but he only threw on 3rd and long.
I’m not picking on CK, it was never realistic to expect that he’d just continue with what he did last year- teams adjust, and good defenses adjust quickly, hence his difficulty with the good passing defenses. And except for Crabtree, they’ve drafted total busts at the wide out spots, their only speed guy is the dreadful Kyle Williams. And they didn’t bring in a respectable vet back up so now they’re petrified he’ll be hurt and have to play McCoy.Which hurts the play calling.
No Twin, the problem was turning 2nd and short into third and long. This happened more and a few times after a 1st down play was followed by a 2nd down sack. Kappy nearly got Hunter killed on a screen pass attempt.
Twin, I’ve been railing about screen passes since Nolan left. It was a big part of his game. Now it’a once a game or less. Same with slants. Gore used to catch a ton of balls before Nolan left. Now, not so much.
What I can’t stand are the 5 yard outs and WR bubble screens. This cannot be the extent of the passing game. And that is how it seems. Most teams have twenty to thirty 15 yard pass plays. Do we have 4?
“No Twin, the problem was turning 2nd and short into third and long. ”
Uh, that’s what I said. That the problem wasn’t third down, it was distance to go on third down. Obviously that’s created by the failure on 1st and 2nd down- and I outlined some of the issues on second down.
All true stuff there Twin, but it seems like when it is third and long and Kaep does complete a pass the Niner receivers are catching those passes only 7-8 yards deep. I can’t count how many times that has happened. Getting to the first down marker and then making your cut or whatever that is all I am asking for from the WR. the good WR’s always know where that 1st down marker is.
My problem with this last game is the inflexibility of the offense to adjust at all. It looked like the DEs were pinching in just about every play as the Niners either running up the middle, or dropping straight back to pass. No pitches to the outside or misdirection to slow the penetration.
As said as nauseum, the Niners can control the line against bad teams and thus run to get the passing going. When the run game isn’;t there, tteams simply rush 5 and we can’t pick up the blitzes to save our lives.
(A very loud BLEEP emanates from the Chuck abode!)
Per KNBR radio report, our long, national nightmare is over.
KW has been released…
Oh Yeah! Now for the rest of the season!
Meanwhile, Keenan Allen has NOT been released by the Chargers…
Per that Cosell dude with NFL Films, he says Kap is obviously is learning how to be a pocket passer. He’s not comfortable yet making throws before the break, and trusting his receivers will be open at the spot and catch the ball. Could that be partly because they drop the ball fairly often if he gets it to them? Meanwhile, Cosell also says the WRs aren’t getting open a lot, but sometimes they are. He gets paid for this genius?…
One thing I thought was interesting that Cosell noted was that the Niners have started more plays using a fullback, Miller, than any other NFL team so far this season. He says that’s a sign of lack of confidence in the QB…
… or maybe that Frank Gore runs downhill better behind one and our preferred power I running formation pretty much requires one.
San Francisco, in fact, ranks 32nd in the league in passing offense in averaging only 174 yards per game. Smith and the undefeated Chiefs rank 27th in that category in averaging 198 yards a game.
Read more here: http://blogs.sacbee.com/49ers/archives/2013/11/alex-smith-v-colin-kaepernick-a-side-by-side-by-side-comparison.html#storylink=cpy
2013 quarterback comparison
Average yards per game
Smith: 213.2
Kaepernick: 186.1
Passing attempts
Smith: 315
Kaepernick: 220
Passer rating
Smith: 81.4
Kaepernick: 83.0
Average yards per attempt
Smith: 6.1
Kaepernick: 7.6
Touchdowns
Smith: 9
Kaepernick: 9
Interceptions
Smith: 4
Kaepernick: 6
Sacks
Smith: 26
Kaepernick: 21
Rushing yards
Smith: 265 (1 TD)
Kaepernick: 310 (3 TDs)
Lost fumbles
Smith: 0
Kaepernick: 4
Read more here: http://blogs.sacbee.com/49ers/archives/2013/11/alex-smith-v-colin-kaepernick-a-side-by-side-by-side-comparison.html#storylink=cpy
Kaepernick vs. 2012 Alex Smith
(Alex Smith’s first nine starts w/ 49ers*)
Average yards per game
Smith: 193
Kaepernick: 186.1
Passing attempts
Smith: 218
Kaepernick: 220
Passer rating
Smith: 104.1
Kaepernick: 83.0
Average yards per attempt
Smith: 8.0
Kaepernick: 7.6
Touchdowns
Smith: 13
Kaepernick: 9
Interceptions
Smith: 5
Kaepernick: 6
Sacks
Smith: 24
Kaepernick: 21
Rushing yards
Smith: 132 (0 TDs)
Kaepernick: 310 (3 TDs)
Lost fumbles
Smith: 1
Kaepernick: 4
* Smith left the game with a concussion midway through his ninth start of the season
Read more here: http://blogs.sacbee.com/49ers/archives/2013/11/alex-smith-v-colin-kaepernick-a-side-by-side-by-side-comparison.html#storylink=cpy
So much for upgrading at QB
CK is just inexperienced and it’s showing this year. Last year teams were unprepared for him and his physical skills were enough. This year he’s missing some weapons and not surprisingly has struggled against the top pass defense teams. He’ll get better-or not- depending on how well he adjusts. The Saints game is big- if they take that they have a good chance to be 9-3 going into the Seahawks game.
Run or pass, we favor a two tight end offense. It’s a scheme with many advantages to my mind. Sunday two of our starting TEs were out. It tends to put a crimp in the ol’ game plan.
The thing is Chuck, I think it’s like a lot of misconceptions that once stated on a blog get repeated as fact (The notion that there are no short alternates or outlets).
In the first series anyway there was a good mix of routes and open receivers. Play action to Miller was a quick short shot, deep right to Boldin (almost a sure pick to the CB) was max protect and included a leaked outlet and a short sideline route. An incomplete to ? on a short crossing route had another short route and a deeper one.
Kaepernick fixing his sights on one guy is a bigger problem. He often throws into double coverage when another receiver is wide open. Is that coaching? QB coaching maybe but not play calling coaching.
“Kaepernick fixing his sights on one guy is a bigger problem. He often throws into double coverage when another receiver is wide open. Is that coaching? QB coaching maybe but not play calling coaching.”
Well I’m an equal opportunity ragger. I never thought, and still don’t think that GR’s a genius. But Kaep has played like crap at times, fo sure. There is definitely truth to his not seeing open receivers.
Yes, it’s a combination if things, NoFear, but late in the game they weren’t doing anything to slow the penetration. The one slant to Manningham worked. Is that the only time they got a slot WR in position to make a play like that? I don’t believe it. And, if so, then it’s huge failure of the coaches. And yes, Kappy locks on a lot. In the GB game eons ago, he had time to get to a 2nd read. This game? Not so much. He was hurried all day. That being said, I did notice Manningham all alone behind VD on play where he got hurt.
My point overall is the lack of adjusting. Well, they stopped running after Hunter fumbled the ball away. The Niners have given up on running outside alltogether. I just think teams are keying on these facts. If you rarely go deep, they don’t need to honor the deep ball. If you don’t run outside, they pinch the DEs in to clog the middle. This equals 151 yards of total offense.
Going back to last year, and a game I saw live, THe Dolphins were playing theior corner 12-15 yards off of Moss. If I’m Roman, I call about 10 slants or outs to Moss until they figure out how to stop it. The whole game he was left alone one-on-one. The Niners did it maybe 3 times.
It’s what infuriated me about Singletary. They’d find a weakness in the other team, and fail to exploit it.
KC, 2013:
Defense points allowed – 1st
Special teams – 1st or darn close to it (subjective, based on my observation)
Opponents’ current records, excluding losses to KC – 30 wins, 45 losses, .400
Add a pinch of blind luck, such as the Bills game, and you have your basic Alex-flavored upside down cake.
(I’ll stick with Kappy.)
Chuck, leave the betting to Dennis.
Give it a break, RT. The Niners winning streak was against teams that were 13-28. The fact is- KC and SF are the same team with the same strengths and weaknesses. KC just makes fewer mistakes on both sides of the ball. That’s why we’re 6-3 and they’re 9-0.
Whatever, Twinnie. Why don’t you just marry the guy after all these years admiring the guy in print?
Niners closer to 11th in points allowed than they are 2nd. Ranked 3rd.
Niners opponents 36-38 .487
Special teams comparison: surely you jest. Just two words: Kyle Williams.
Mr. 6 yards per pass attempt’s season accomplishments are based on showing up.
In case you hadn’t noticed, the criticisms on Skeebs’ and Chuck’s blogs are being leveled, in part and justifiably, at Kap. The implicit comparison with Alex has been raised and not by me.
Get a grip.
See ya. Sorry for crashing your party, To NoFear- hope you had a pleasant Veteran’s Day- and any others who may have served. Perhaps my best friend up here was George, a quadriplegic from injuries suffered in Vietnam. We were of like minds when it came to baseball, total opposites on football and politics. He passed away in the summer of 2012. I miss him and the 4 American flags that stuck out from the corners of his power chair…I even miss the Alex Smith arguments, he couldn’t stand him.
I think you need to a grip, RT- constantly ragging a QB who is no longer here is pathetic. Spin it anyway you like, pal. Smith is 28-5 since 2011. Put it all on luck, coaching, whatever you choose. People who don’t know football put no stock in ball security but that’s a huge reason why his teams have that record. Now before you get into gloat mode- KC is going to lose 3 or 4 of their last 7, finishing 12-4 or 13-3. I’d be interested in how thought they’d fare this year with Smith quarterbacking. 7-9?
Now pay attention- I haven’t been here yakking up Smith and have pretty much stayed away in general, mostly becuse I didn’t want to be faced with you and a couple others who won’t even let go of trashing Smith after he’s gone. I didn’t bring him up on this thread either. If nothing else he conducted himself with class and whatever you thought of him as a QB, you might try conducting *yourself* with class and wish him well now that he’s moved on. Your comment that his accomplishments are just a result of “showing up” is truly awesome in the magnitude of it’s ignorance.
It appears that CK7 gets two plays to call in the huddle. He counts the box or the safeties/Will backer alignment and kills the play to the alternate. That seems to chew up as much time as anything. Heavy box – pass, light box – run. IOW, the desired play could have been one of those you wanted to see and CK7 didn’t like the defensive count and killed it.
It’s true that you don’t know what you don’t know. Last year was easier for CK7 because he didn’t know too much about the defenses he saw. Now he knows enough to be easily fooled and confused and the league has a lot more film on his tendencies.
You can see he’s more tentative and thinking too much. Hopefully, he’ll get settled down and back to playing the game without overthinking it. There’s no substitute for experience. And with any luck it will become second nature instead of a thought process. And it’s smart to lean on a solid running game during the transition. And especially when half of your playmakers in the passing game are out.
After all they tried letting CK7 loose and got burned pretty badly.
But to agree with you, I can’t understand why we never got back to those great formations and plays called in the Green Bay game.